tutorial article 4: eguard manager - egauge

eGauge Systems eGuard Manual

eGuard ManualDecember 7, 2016

Contents

1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

1.1 What is eGuard manager? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

1.2 Who is eGuard for? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

1.3 Signing up for eGuard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

1.4 Requesting Access to Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

2 My Devices (eGuard Table) Page Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

2.1 Device Details Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

3 Account Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

3.1 Access Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

of 12


3.2 My Account . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

3.3 eGuard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

4 Access Rights Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

4.1 Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

4.2 User vs Manager vs Administrator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

4.2.1 Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

4.2.2 Managers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

4.2.3 Administrators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

4.3 Granting and Revoking Access . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

5 Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

6 Alerts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

of 12


1 Introduction

1.1 What is eGuard manager?

eGuard is an administrative management system for eGauge devices that allows an individual to monitor andmanage multiple eGauge systems from a single web interface.

Figure 1: eGuard table

The eGuard interface allows you to view the current status and statistics for all devices you have rights to.With proper authorization, you can also use eGuard to enable remote administration, create device notes,assign and manage groups, monitor device uptime, and check production and/or usage statistics.

eGuard can also generate alerts to inform users of device connectivity issues, low production, high usage, andincorrect time settings.

Devices can be added to groups or sites. Groups can be used to allow other eGuard users to monitor andadminister specific devices, while sites allow devices to be organized based on installation location.

To access eGuard, you will need to create an account at egauge.net. Log in using the green login button at thetop of the page. After logging in, the login button will change to a drop down menu. All eGuard functions(as well as other functions outside of the scope of this document) can be found here.

of 12


1.2 Who is eGuard for?

eGuard is a complementary tool for those who need to manage five or more eGauge devices. eGuard providesquick and direct access to device status information. eGauge highly recommends that any new customerordering more than five eGauges contact the eGauge support department at [email protected] to set up aneGuard account. Newly purchased devices are added to eGuard automatically, before they are shipped.

Use eGuard as a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) tool or in conjunction with other CRM softwareto identify and address issues quickly and efficiently. Note that eGuard is a tool intended for installers andsite administrators and is not intended for use by the average end user. No additional information is providedthrough eGuard that cannot also be obtained through the eGauge interface directly.

1.3 Signing up for eGuard

Signing up for eGuard requires creation of an eGauge.net account. In order to sign up for this account,

navigate to https://www.egauge.net/users/register/. Fill in your account details and click the Registerbutton. Check your email inbox for a confirmation email and follow the steps listed there to confirm youraccount. In order to log in with existing credentials, navigate to http://egauge.net/ and click the green Log In

button at the top of the page.

1.4 Requesting Access to Devices

Once you have created an eGuard account, you will need to request access to groups of devices in order tohave administrative or manager access to those devices. In order to do this:

1. Log into eGuard using the button at the top of http://egauge.net.

2. Once logged in, the Log In button will change to a drop down menu containing your username.Click this menu and select Account Settings.

3. On the “Account Settings” page, under the “Access Manager” header, select Permissions Manager.

4. On the “Permissions Manager” page, under “Request Permission”, enter the login of the user you would

like to request permission from and click the Submit button.

If you are the first person in your company using eGuard, you may need to contact eGauge technical supportfor a login of the user you should request access from. eGauge technical support cannot grant access toanother users group or devices without permission from that user.

of 12

http://egauge.net


2 My Devices (eGuard Table) Page Overview

The eGuard Table page is the main summary area for eGuard. This page presents a table of devices associatedwith your username. The data on the page is updated hourly.

There are a variety of sorting options available. Devices can be sorted by clicking any column header featuring

the sort button to the right of the column header. Individual fields can be disabled if desired using the

icon. Grouping options can be changed using the icon.

• Group: each device belongs to a group. A single user can administer multiple groups, and each groupcan contain multiple subgroups (which can then be shared with other users). To the left of the group

assigned to a given device, there is a Group Editor button . Clicking this button will allow the userto make or change group assignment. Permission required: Administrator or Manager.

• Job: This value is set on the Device Details Page and allows the user to identify the specific locationof an eGauge, if desired. This value does not need to be unique for each eGauge.

• Owner: Only one entity can own an eGauge. This may or may not be the same as the eGuard admin-istrator. For example, a device might be administered by “Installer” but owned by “Homeowner”. Thisvalue will be blank if the device is not registered.

• Device Name: The name of the eGauge meter. This can only be changed by contacting eGauge directly,and is guaranteed to be unique. The name itself is also a link to that eGauges user interface (providedthe device is online).

• Device Details Button: This icon appears to the left of the Device Name. When clicked, it willopen the Device Details Page for a specific eGauge. Additional information related to the eGauge canbe added here. This will be covered in a later section.

• Map: If a device has a latitude and longitude value set (through the actual device interface) this column

will contain a clickable icon . When clicked, a map centered on the location of the device will loadin a new window.

• Status: Shows whether the eGauge was online or offline during the most recent check by eGuard.Since this value only updates once an hour, it is not a guarantee that a specific device is online/offline.

• Available: Describes the device uptime over the past five days as a percentage. Hovering the mousecursor over the percentage will cause a popup to display with detailed connectivity statistics. Hoveringthe mouse outside the percentage, but inside the “Available” cell will show the date and time the unitwas last seen.

• Temp: Device internal operating temperature. This should not be confused with ambient temp, andwill almost always be slightly warmer.

• Link Quality: Connection quality for devices using HomePlug adapters. This only works for deviceswith firmware 2.13 or greater. The field will be blank for devices on older firmware.

of 12


• Firmware: Shows current firmware version for a given device. Versions listed in red should be up-graded as major bugfixes and patches have been implemented in newer firmware. You may [email protected] to determine if you must upgrade the firmware.

• Average/Total Values: The user may select average (kW) or total (kWh) values for predefined timeranges. All values are sortable. The Sum column allows values for multiple devices to be addedtogether at the bottom of the list.

2.1 Device Details Page

The Device Details Page is a summary and control area for a specific eGauge device. Each eGauge will haveits own device page, regardless of whether it is in a group or site with other eGauges.

Use caution when changing settings on the device page. It is possible to overwrite settings and user creden-tials.

Figure 2: eGuard Device Details page

of 12


Administrators have access to all features on the Device Details Page. Managers have limited access, andusers have no access to the Device Details Page.

• Register a Device: Allows you to register any device with the MAC address and device name.

• Manage Alerts: This brings you to the eGuard alert management page. See section 6, Alerts.

• Data for Device: This shows the device in the main eGuard table.

• Reset Password: This allows you to reset a password for a given user on the device. A randomlygenerated password is shown after completion. The password should be changed after it is reset byclicking the Access Control button under Remote Administration Control. This only functions if thedevice is available on the eGauge proxy server. Permission required: Administrator.

• Remote Administration Control: This area allows you to enable or disable remote administration.This impacts the first set of credentials on a device, which is typically the default username/passwordcombination of owner/default. Remote administration will be disabled for devices using the defaultcredentials after a short period of time as a security measure. Access Control is a shortcut to thecredentials manager on that specific device. Permission required: Administrator or Manager.

• Firmware: This allows for a portable firmware file to be downloaded. This is useful for eGauges thatrequire firmware updates but have limited or no connectivity. Firmware update files are unique for eachdevice. Permission required: Administrator.

• Remote Configuration Control: This feature should be used with caution, as it can cause a loss ofdata. With this tool, the user can fetch a configuration from another device to apply to this device. Bothdevices need to be online, connected to the proxy server, and running the same firmware. Addition-ally, a device cannot fetch a configuration from a device with more registers than are available on thedestination device. Permission required: Administrator.

• Privileged Device Info: Details regarding registration and specific hardware information. The hard-ware MAC address is typically used as proof-of-ownership by eGauge technical support and should notbe shared. Permission required: Administrator.

• Job Name: Allows a specific job name to be set for a device. This field does not need to be unique;multiple devices can have the same Job Name. Permission required: Administrator (edit) or Manager(view only).

• Installer Notes: Space for any notes regarding the eGauge, installation considerations, important notes,and so on. This is only visible to someone with access to the device via eGuard (including eGaugetechnical support). Permission required: Administrator (edit) or Manager (view only).

• Site Controls: “Create Site Info” allows a new site to be created containing this device. “Link XXXX toan Existing Site” allows this device to be linked to an existing site. Permission required: Administrator.

of 12


3 Account Settings

The account settings page is the primary control area for eGuard and your egauge.net account. There are anumber of subsections.

Figure 3: eGauge.net Account Setttings page

3.1 Access Manager

• Permissions Manager: Gives a user the ability to grant access to their devices (or groups of theirdevices) to another user. Requests for access will appear here. The access level of a user who hasbeen granted access to one of your groups or subgroups can be modified from this page. Permissionrequired: Administrator (to change or grant access).

• Group Manager: Allows the creation, deletion, and modification of groups and subgroups. Groupscontaining devices cannot be deleted, and deleting a group containing subgroups will delete the sub-groups as well. Permission required: Administrator or Manager.

• Alert Manager: Here, alerts to be set for groups of devices. These alerts are less customizable thanindividual device alerts. However, using eGuard alerts is generally quicker to set up and does not rely onthe network at the installation location. This means alerts could be sent if a device loses connectivity, forexample. See section 6, Alerts for more information. Permission required: Administrator or Manager.

of 12


• Site Manager: Sites can be managed on this page. New sites can be created from this page, andeGauges can be assigned to new or existing sites as needed. Permission required: Administrator orManager.

• Device Manager: Here, users can add devices to groups or move devices between groups. Permissionrequired: Administrator or Manager

3.2 My Account

• Register Devices: Registering a device using the MAC address, purchase date, and device name provesownership of the device and associates the warranty with the registrant. If the registering user hasadministrator access to one or more groups, they will have the option to add the registered device totheir group if it does not belong in any existing group.

• Update contact information: Contact information should be kept up to date, especially if orderinghardware from eGauge Systems. The email address provided here is the destination for all alerts gen-erated through eGuard.

• Order History: Shows completed orders from eGauge Systems.

• Change Password: This changes the password used to log into egauge.net. It has no effect on thecredentials of individual devices.

• Generate Quote: Allows a tentative quote to be created. This must be finalized by a member of theeGauge Systems sales staff. This quote will including bulk pricing, if applicable.

3.3 eGuard

• eGuard Table: Link to the eGuard table/My Devices page.

• Map: Shows device locations. This only applies to devices which have GPS location informationadded. This option is configured in the eGauge interface itself, not through eGuard.

• Details for Device: Search window for specific devices. Accepts partial search strings (for exam-ple, 123 would load eGauge123 and eGauge12345, assuming those devices are in the users group).Selecting a device will load the corresponding Device Details Page.

of 12


4 Access Rights Management

The eGuard access rights system is designed to enable delegation both within a single organization and acrossorganizations. Within a single organization, there may be multiple administrators with equivalent rights toaccess and modify devices. eGuard reflects this scenario as multiple users with administrative access to asingle group. If an organization has subsidiaries or franchisees, it may be desirable to delegate administrationof those devices to the appropriate subsidiary or franchisee. eGuard reflects this as a subgroup within theorganizations main group; the franchisee or subsidiary would have administrative access to the subgrouponly. There may also be individuals who only require limited access to devices. These individuals wouldhave user level access to devices, without the ability to make changes.

Another type of delegation occurs when an organization owns a set of devices but wants to give anotherorganization the ability to manage those devices. eGuard reflects this by creating a subgroup of devicesand granting manager access to the second organization. The second organization would then be able toenable/disable remote administration on the device through eGuard, but would not be able to change theaccess rights of the administrator of those devices on eGuard.

4.1 Groups

eGuard manages access rights based on which group a device belongs to. Group names are hierarchical andconsist of a sequence of group name components which are separated by colons. The left-most component isthe top-level component; the right-most component is the bottom or lowest-level component.

For example, given groups:

Fruit:PearFruit:Apple:Fiji

Figure 4: Example of Group Hierarchy

In figure 4, Fruit is the parent of Apple; Apple is the parent of Fuji. If a user had certain rights for groupFruit those rights apply to all subgroups as well. However, if another user had rights only to group Pear,then those rights would not apply to Apple or any Apple subgroups such as Fiji.

4.2 User vs Manager vs Administrator

Users have the most basic level of access to devices; they can see certain device details but cannot make anychanges. This is the safest level of access for third parties. Administrators have full access to devices, whilemanagers have only partial control. Generally speaking, a user should be an administrator if they retainownership of a device, if they are responsible for configuring the device, or if they are expected to makechanges to the device details associated with eGuard (job name, site, etc).

Note that administrators and managers can also create subgroups in their groups. A user who only needsaccess to monitor (not change) device details would be better served by the manager level of access. This willallow them to view and track device statistics but not make changes. Third party installers or organizationsdoing billing or similar are some examples.

of 12


4.2.1 Users

Users have view-only access to all devices in group(s) they have user access to. They have only permissionsto view the main device list. When in doubt, user level access is generally the safest level of access to grantto a third party. Users cannot view the Device Details Page, but have access to the main device list table.

4.2.2 Managers

Managers have access to all the devices in the group(s) that they manage. They can perform the followingoperations:

• View the device data collected by eGuard displayed in My Devices (eGuard Table)

• Enable/disable remote administration on a device.

• Reassign a device to a subgroup within a parent-group. In figure 4 a manager of Apple could move adevice to group Fuji but not to Pear.

• Create a subgroup for any of the managed groups.

• Delete a subgroup, provided no devices are assigned to that subgroup.

• May view the site/job-name associated with a device (if any).

• Update site information

4.2.3 Administrators

Administrators are users who have special administrative rights for devices belonging to a particular group.In addition to the manager rights listed above, administrators can perform the following operations:

• Upon request, may grant others user, manager, or administrator rights to a group or a subgroup.

• May revoke the right of other users to manage or administer a group or subgroup. All administratorsfor a given group are treated equally, so administrator A may revoke the right from administrator B ofthe same group and vice versa. An administrator of a group may not affect users who have permissionsto a parent group.

• May view/edit the installation notes associated with a device (if any).

• May edit the site/job-name associated with a device (if any).

• May view the contact information for the user that registered as the owner of the device (if any).

• May reset a devices password.

of 12


4.3 Granting and Revoking Access

When a user requests access to a group, it is up to an administrator of that group to decide whether to grantor deny access. Furthermore, the administrator will need to decide what level of access is appropriate. Thesefunctions are performed on the Access Manager page. Pending requests will appear on this page when theyare sent; the administrator to whom the request was sent can then apply the appropriate permissions.

If a user no longer needs access to a specific group (for example, because a monitoring contract has expired),or if the permission level needs to be modified, these settings can be adjusted under the User Permissionsheader.

5 Sites

Sites allow for a grouping of devices based on location, and has fields to add information relevant to thatparticular location. Multiple devices can be added to a single Site where they can easily be cross-referencedfor troubleshooting or other purposes. Devices can be added or removed from Sites as needed.

6 Alerts

eGuard offers limited alert functionality. Alerts are sent when any device in the alert group meets the requiredconditions. Existing alerts are also shown on this page. There are four alert types.

• A device has been unreachable for x hours: triggers when any device in the alert group has not con-nected to the proxy server in x hours. There are a number of reasons a device might lose connectivity.

• A device time is off by x minutes: triggers when the device time is set incorrectly. This could happenduring a configuration change, or due to other issues.

• Generation during the last 24 hours is less than x kWh: triggers when any device reports generationless than x kWh.

• Usage during the last 24 hours is greater than x kWh: triggers when any device reports usage greaterthan x kWh.

There is no limit to the number of alerts that can be created.

of 12

tutorial article 4: eguard manager - egauge

Documents